THERE is confusion over reports than an "Irishman" has died in a hospital in Mexico 10 days after he was assaulted near the US border.

The unnamed 26-year-old was said to have been in a coma for nearly two weeks in the city of Ciudad Juarez after his body was discovered near the Paso del Norte Bridge, which runs between the Mexican city and El Paso in Texas.

Local newspaper El Diario reported that the 26-year-old died from brain injuries sustained in the alleged assault, at approximately 5.30pm on Saturday evening.

The Department of Foreign Affairs said it was standing-by to provide consular assistance but that “it had yet to receive such a request”.

A spokesperson for the Irish Consulate in Mexico told Independent.ie that they were “unaware of any Irish deaths in Ciudad Juarez in recent weeks” but added they were ready to provide assistance if required.

No one from the Chihuahua District Attorney’s office could be reach to confirm the death.

It is not yet clear whether the suspected assault took place on the Mexican or United States side of the border, though US consulate officials in Ciudad Juarez said they “had no record of any American citizen being assaulted.”

Authorities first believed the victim was from the UK but later said he was an Irish citizen, reported El Diario.

Ciudad Juarez, and the state of Chihuahua, has seen over 100,000 deaths since authorities declared martial law due to vicious feuding between drug gangs.